A. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a support system for shoes, including walking, jogging and running shoes. The invention includes a heel post to control rearfoot pronation and transfer the running forces forward over the entire forefoot, a fifth (little) toe extension or support to compensate for lateral imbalance by establishing an effective inward rotation of the foot and preventing outward rotation, and a first (big) toe extension or support to stabilize the first metatarsal. The fifth and first extensions terminate distally underneath the neck portion of the fifth and first proximal phalanges, respectively, to improve stability and balance. The heel post terminates distally underneath the posterior end of the knee bone and provides a lift on the lateral side to correct the normal inversion of a human heel. The heel post and extensions cooperate to promote proper weight transfer and movement, provide increased stability, and decrease strains and injuries.
B. Description of the Prior Art
When a person runs or even walks, the human foot and its many bones and connecting tissues are subjected to a complex combination of movements and forces. As a person moves through a single stride, his foot contacts the ground and accepts the resultant shock, rotates through several actions, and eventually pushes off with the assistance of the foot and leg muscles. If the person's foot is imbalanced or unstable, the connective tissues and bones can be strained or even broken. Moreover, any imperfections in a person's foot, or the support of that foot, can drastically decrease the efficiency of body movement.
In the past a variety of devices and supports have been designed to correct various pathological conditions in a person's foot. Among these corrective appliances, including arch supports for correcting flat feet, are (1) a platform to relieve strain and permit toe gripping (Davis U.S. Pat. No. 2,415,580); (2) a metatarsal edge or longitudinal arch support (Davis U.S. Pat. No. 4,224,750); (3) a support designed to force bending of the big toe during walking by flexing at the hallux joint (Sigle U.S. Pat. No. 4,240,214); (4) a support designed to shift or roll the foot in the direction of the big toe by lowering the ball of the big toe in relation to the ball of the little toe (Sigle U.S. Pat. No. 4,317,298); (5) a support to provide an extension under the first phalanx (Morton U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,847,973 and 2,623,307); (6) an elongated pad positioned under the medial third of the calcaneous bone and the first metatarsal bone to tilt the rear part of the foot and the front part of the foot (Bunsick U.S. Pat. No. 4,170,233); and (7) a foot support contoured to the sole that terminates at its distal edge near the joints of the five metatarsal bones to the proximal phalanges, but distally of at least some of the joints (Delport U.S. Pat. No. 4,224,750).
To applicant's knowledge, these various prior art devices have failed to provide a support that corrects and stabilizes the foot in a broad category of applications. Nor have they produced a support that can broadly protect runners from serious strains and injuries caused, at least in part, by the natural imperfections of the human foot.